His Job
by Cheria
Summary: Reno muses over the hatred the Turks face and his indifference to death. People are so quick to jump to conclusions.


Disclaimer: I do not own Final Fantasy VII or any of its contents, SquareEnix does.

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Contrary to popular belief, the Turks are not shunned, nor are they ostracized. They are only feared. No one in their right mind dares to stand up against the secret police force where their specialties lie in covert acts. Men flinch when they pass by them out of fear of being forcefully recruited into SOLDIER; women hold their children closely with a watchful eye; and children feel the tense atmosphere and retreat to their parents. It is no different for any member of the Turks: everyone goes out of their way to be on guard for no apparent reason whenever a straight figure clad in a black suit approaches.

Reno knows the slums do this most often. They cannot easily distinguish wealthy businessmen and landowners apart from the Turks. They're the most cautious of the lot, the ones on the best guard and weariness. Slum rats, as they are commonly called, are simply raised in such a way; to always be on his or her best guard. Any show of weakness is not affordable, for other rival rats in search of food and money will devour the one who makes himself vulnerable without mercy. They are arguably the safer "citizens" of Midgar as a result.

Yet they're the most to suffer and perish when the plate falls. Crushed, suffocated, and incapacitated until death claims them - an endless cycle of life taking in the area below the plate that has been dropped.

Tifa questions him on his morals. Why did he so willingly drop the plate, and how could he have done it with a smile to add to the cruelty? All Reno does is flash her his trademark cross of a smirk and a scowl, his words casual and deliberate.

Because it was his job.

She stares at him oddly and he hopes she's not patronizing him with that look. He can't stand criticism on a person's character, especially on the Turks, because they tend to be false. People assume and point out false accusations until everyone else believes the same and there are one or two victims who can't help themselves. So what if he's killed hundreds of people with the press of a button? And with a cocky smile to boot? He's killed before, and not a soul even thought about judging him on the assassinations he's taken part in (at least no one in ShinRa).

It irritates the hell out of him, how people are now immediately on alert at the mere mention of the Turks. They're a major threat to the citizens now that they've dropped a plate? The thought makes him snort. They are forgetting that the Turks have been around and killing for the past few _decades_, just from one incident that makes no different to him.

It's his damn job. He's done it plenty of times.

Granted, he hasn't killed so many people in one shot before, but the feeling is the same. He still killed. Big deal - everyone dies at some point.

Reno is hardly ever fazed by the missions he partake in. He's committed the act of murder too many times to count to even care anymore. Oh, sure, he remembers his victims: he has a good memory. But remorse is an entirely different story.

Just like that time when Zack died protecting Cloud (who absolutely _had_ to drag himself away to make their job harder, god knows why. Even now he doesn't understand the kid), and he and Rude were supposed to find them. He's been on search missions, and while that was the first time he failed to retrieve the target alive, it didn't bother him in the slightest. And it still doesn't. Zack was a superb SOLDIER, he'll give him that, but it wasn't personally a big loss on Reno's part. Targets die all the time in both search and destroy missions; it's no different to Reno - Zack was another target who happened to get the short end of the stick.

So why is the plate dropping any different?

Simple. It isn't. People seem to like treating it otherwise, though, and it bugs him. They're so incredibly simple- and narrow-minded, he muses, but it can't be helped when they suddenly suspect that the Turks are out to get _them_. That's silly bull if Reno has ever heard one - and he's heard a _lot_ of bull in his years.

All right, the process was different, that much he'll admit. But the results were the same, albeit it was by a much larger measure. Hundreds, possibly thousands, dead (or presumed to be, because there is no way anyone under the plate could have survived being crushed in the vincity).

"You killed my sister!"

"You're the reason my fiancé is dead!"

"I _hate_ you. Go to hell."

"How could you?"

"I lost the last of my family, and all because of you!"

"I don't care if you're a Turk; they're all scums, the lot of you!"

Yeah, yeah, he gets it. Guilt tripping is pointless and repetitive.

What difference does it make? By this point Reno is indifferent to his supposed "crimes", no matter how legitimate they may be in the eyes of ShinRa. He doesn't care when people make a big deal out of a job, claiming that they'd be next or cursing the Turks. It's funny how some have a neutral or positive impression, and when something negative happens to them, they immediately hate them.

None of it matters to him though, and for a pretty straightforward reason.

Because it's his damn job.


End file.
